Our story

As you’ll discover exploring this site, SentryWorld can be described many ways. It’s Wisconsin’s premier parkland golf course, renowned for its inviting atmosphere, the celebrated Flower Hole, and exceptional amenities during play. It’s the area’s finest wedding venue, with comfortable accommodations and gorgeous backdrops. It’s a new boutique hotel, offering upscale lodging with golf course views. It’s home to PJ’s – SentryWorld, a popular eatery where the locally sourced cuisine is as creative as it is delicious. It’s a gathering place for a community that extends far beyond the city, state, or region.

But above all, it’s the feeling you get when you walk under the porte cochere. Knowing you’ve arrived at a place where you’re always welcome. A place that is fundamentally Wisconsin. A destination within reach.

Committed to our guests and our community

The Flower Hole and so much more

Thanks to central Wisconsin’s picturesque landscape and the ingenuity of architect Robert Trent Jones, Jr. and his collaborators, SentryWorld features a number of holes that stand among the state’s most beautiful. The par five fifth, for example—a dramatic cape hole wrapped around the big lake’s shoreline. Or hole 12, a par three that sends tee shots over water to a peninsula green. But our signature hole is surely the par three Flower Hole, which features 33,000 vivid flowers surrounding its green. For the beauty and character of these holes and the rest of the course, SentryWorld has earned its reputation as a Midwestern golf destination.

Home, history, and heritage

SentryWorld is a tribute to our roots in the community of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and the pride we all feel for the area. When past Sentry Insurance CEO John Joanis developed plans to construct SentryWorld in the early 1980s, he wanted it first and foremost to be a celebration of the city, the state, the region, and the people who made it possible. Course designer Robert Trent Jones Jr. made that dream a reality. Current Sentry Chairman of the Board, President, and CEO Pete McPartland renewed SentryWorld’s dedication to Stevens Point in 2013 by spearheading the facility’s major renovation, updating and improving the venue and once again providing visitors with an authentic central Wisconsin experience. He furthered that commitment in 2021 with the opening of The Inn at SentryWorld—a charming, upscale boutique hotel built off the 18th green that serves business clientele, golfers, and visitors to the community. We also enhanced the golf course in 2021 in advance of hosting the 2023 U.S. Senior Open. Course improvements inspired a renewed focus on making each and every round outstanding, relaxing, and truly one-of-a-kind.

A small city on the shores of the Wisconsin River, Stevens Point has gained a reputation as an outdoor destination, a cultural and artistic hotspot, and a thriving, welcoming community. Its geography is distinctive, as rivers converge and northern forests meet southern fields. Its location—the meeting point of Interstate 39 and US 10, comfortably within four hours of Chicago, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, and Madison—makes it among the most accessible cities in Wisconsin. Home to approximately 27,000 people, the city brings together an array of contemporary amenities while preserving its pastoral small town appeal. Ultimately, Stevens Point is a perfect representation of central Wisconsin as a whole: a community that makes visitors feel at home.

A Wisconsin city unlike any other

A legacy worth remembering

We’ve called Stevens Point home since 1912, when P.J. Jacobs brought the Hardware Dealers Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Wisconsin to town. That small company thrived, and went on to become Sentry Insurance. Decades later, John Joanis led a project to build a cutting-edge recreation complex, a place where residents and visitors alike would feel welcome: SentryWorld. When it came time to renovate in 2013, SentryWorld’s restaurant was given an overhaul and a new, meaningful name: PJ’s – SentryWorld. Named for P.J. Jacobs, the restaurant is a tribute to the region’s cuisine and the man who brought Sentry to Stevens Point all those years ago.

During your SentryWorld visit, be sure to explore all that Stevens Point has to offer

Celebrating the community we call home

Central Wisconsin’s rich heritage is incorporated throughout SentryWorld. The design of both the main building and hotel, with their combination of rustic elements and modern sensibility, reflects the work of Wisconsin’s own Frank Lloyd Wright. The Community Room, free for local nonprofit use, exemplifies SentryWorld’s dedication to its home. PJ’s, meanwhile, features almost entirely locally sourced ingredients, from the meats to the vegetables and—of course—the cheeses. Then there’s the course itself, a parkland-style golfing paradise that reflects the beauty of the area. Here at SentryWorld, we’re proud of our home, and we aim to celebrate it at every turn.